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Soviet Log 69
Local Omniscience (Rocco and Rape-Boy) We pick up the action in a large chamber far below the Pope Castle. As we had seen at the end of last session, a horrifying tentacular extra-dimensional beast has just appeared. Likely summoned by the debauchery-fueled ritual happening between the priests and altar boys. The chamber is divided into three areas. The area by the stairs where the Gang begins the session is flanked by two large statues of a priest riding into battle. At the center is a large magical brazier that had just lit, as if triggered by the beast's arrival. To the south is an area that had been separated by the magical barrier but is now open. This area is where the ritual had taken place and still has some priests and altar boys. Beyond that area is a supernaturally lit cavern where the Tentacle Beast loomed. Thanks to some subtle(?) DM hints, the Gang tries to ascertain the story of the brazier and statues. Luckily, Dante's Papal Lore is up to the task when he Nat 20's the roll. He identifies the statues as belonging to a long-dead "warrior pope" (Julius), and that each was holding two weapons. A stone sword which is part of the statue but more interestingly, a magical bone rod engraved with 'dark Latin' runes. The critical success also tells them that the rods have two powers: Ignite and Exorcism. This gives them some hope that they can defeat the Beast, but they would have to get close since both spells have a short range. Dante and Afie run to grab the Pope rods while Gio runs forward and engaged one of the priests. The priest has a Hard Wind on his Construct which proves troublesome for Gio and Dante's animated silverware. Gio, Dante, and the silverware spend the rest of the combat battling it out with the same priest in a brave effort to distract him so that Afie can slip past. Which he does and soon finds himself facing a half dozen entranced altar boys and priests who are completely enraptured by the Beast. To everyone's horror, three of them are magically raised into the air and then implode in some sick kind of sacrifice. It was about this time that the lads realize that the reason the beast hasn't attacked them beyond a couple of brutal mind rapes asking "why?" is because it was building extra throne piles for its friends. After he sacrifices the humans another, smaller, tentacle beast is summoned to the new throne pile! The Beasts the attempt to do it again with the remaining sacrifices but Afie is there to stop it. It is a tough call for him, but to stop another sacrificial summoning, Afie has to shoot an altar boy. In the Head. With his double over-magnumed Multi Pistol. Almost nobody saw it except for Rock (a spunky altar boy), Rape Boy (another altar boy), and the entire party. The Beasts don't like this at all, so they try to enchant Afie, but a well-spent Benny turns a Crit Fail into a Crit Success and he resists becoming the next sacrifice! The new Beast is in range of Afie's Pope Rod because a combination of daring distraction, Combat Mobility, and Jump Boots has allowed Afie to charge far ahead, right to the very edge of the Beast's lair, so he lets lose with an Exorcism on the smaller and closer of the two. Unfortunately, the beast rolls a strong save which should have resisted the magic, but, in a moment of desperate teamwork Gio sacrifices one of his Bennies (echoes of the Dragon Benny from Space Junk.) to force a re-roll, which the beast then fails and gets hurled back into the inter-dimensional pit from whence it came! With the small one dispatched Afie moves closer to the big Beast to get within range. It is at this time that Afie gets a chance to feel the full effect of necrotic poison acid attacks, which begin to quickly wear him down. It gets worse when the Beast moves up to tentacle grab Afie and he is plunged into its HR8 tentacle-storm aura. Despite his precarious position Afie hits it with another Exorcism, and it fails its Save, but to everyone's horror it only weakens the beast!. Afie's EBA is no match for the onslaught and it explodes into sparks, exposing Afie to the full horrible influence of the Beast. It all comes down to one last chance. One last action before the aura will kill Afie. He Papal Lores up some convincing Latin and lets lose with a final Exorcism. The Gang is all ready with extra Bennies if necessary to force additional re-rolls, but they are not not required. The first save is a failure; the Beast rolls badly again, and it too is banished! After the beast is dispatched, Gio and Dante finish off their priest and the gang hustles the survivors out a secret door that Rocko shows them. They ensconce Roco as the leader of the group Orphans that they had relocated away from the Voormi earlier and make him an honorary gang-member, then deliver the ring to Don X, haggling a minor additional reward. Mission complete. Prologue complete! Rewards Main PCs Gain: Memories of the final fight from the perspective of the Prologue Character they played... AND 1 Skill known at the level known by the Prologue Character... OR +1 DF on a skill known by the Prologue Character 3 Bennies for Shared Benny Pool (spent bennies pass between Arbiter and PCs) Category:Soviet